Hey all, I'm from Wisconsin and need some ideas on what wood to use. I am thinking of either ash, juniper, or maybe even something out of the dogwood bush. I've used the dogwood before for arrow shafts, it is extremely flexible when wet, but dries very hard.

here are some links on the 3 species if you aren't familiar-

Ash- http://dnr.wi.gov/forestry/treeid/TreePgs/fraxnigra.htm
Dogwood- http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/cs_cose16.pdf
Juniper- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juniperus_virginiana

If you have any recommendations besides these 3 please let me know!

What about hickory? I know the Amish make those bentwood rocking chairs out of hickory. I haven't tried it myself though.

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Ebisu, Iwana 11'ft (with additional short handle), Amago, Ito, Ayu II

Pines and firs are much easier to work with and plenty strong enough. Most Japanese makers use trees in those families.
Save the deciduous trees for when you've made a bunch of tamos out of evergreens.

JDP1292, I think the juniper, or here in Tenn called Cedar, is a tough wood to bend. And it is also hard to glue without it being extremely dry. The extreme decay resistance it has makes for gluing resistance. The wood is very interesting looking however. I need to experiment more with it. There's alot of cedar here.

Dogwood, I've got a few dogwoods in the yard. I like the look of dogwood. It should make a great Tamo. The wood should work well for a tamo. It would make a strong Tamo. I have no suitable branch shapes unfortunately.

Ash seems to be the all around best since it's seasoning/drying time should be the quickest and easiest. I will have to try and find some to try.

I'm always on the lookout for the right sizes and shapes of specimens. It's a fun pass time looking for the right combinations. Hackberry is the best so far that I've found. About a month drying time, easy cutting, sanding/ polishing, bends without steam, and full of character. Here's a few pics of the ongoing Tamo for my wife. Daniel said "I think there's a lot of meaning to it that you want to make it for your wife and the branch looks like it has two joined sides to it, like a husban and wife embracing." Very nice romantic way of seeing the natural forms and character of the wood. I would love to meet Daniel, maybe in the GSMNP gathering. Always enjoy people with a passion and love for the natural world. This branch held alot of other interesting shapes too. I call it the Mushroom Tamo.




Like the two forms in the wood the Mushroom has always been a joke in the family. Since I say I'm treated like a mushroom. Kept in the dark and fed full of shit. A good funny matching of form, joke, and gift for my best of friends.

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Tenkara Mushroom

Hi JDP. I'm here in the Twin Cities and have been using ash for most of my frames. It has been the most consistently workable wood I've found. That being said, be prepared to steam the heck out of it; I steam to start bending it then immerse it in boiling water to soften it up enough to get it circular. Be patient and CAREFUL! I set the pot on the floor when I get to the full immersion portion of the exercise. It helps if you have a kettle that has the same diameter of the hoop you want to end up with, 'cause once you get both arms in the scalding water push down vertically on the handle and the arms will spread out to the edges of your pot. Tada! Circular hoop. I then use a terra cotta flower pot to hold the hoop circular for drying. Forgive me if that isn't exactly what you asked but these hardwoods are really tough to work with but do make beautiful and strong nets.

The only other wood in the area that I've had luck with is Ironwood(hornbeam). It bends well(using the above method) and the grain seems to hold together better during bending than even ash. It doesn't have the nice opposing branches many ash do, but if you find one that works, you'll have a net that is stronger than any other out there. Good luck. Hunting for the branches is my favorite part.

Hey Advent...are there any normal trees in Tennessee? Those pieces of wood you find are crazy beautiful! I guess I've been resistant to opening my mind to the more twisted alternatives out there, not that there's anything wrong with that.

Yeah I walked past that tree many times before I got it. I'm sorry just thought it would be an interesting tamo. I wasn't sure if it was going to far. I'll tone down the next one. I like your net bags very much Todd, one of these days I'll have to get the real Tamo bag. Your recycled bags look great. I wasn't sure about the Mushroom Tamo bag yet, still thinking brodin ghost bag. I like the placing the frame into the pot idea, very clever.

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Tenkara Mushroom

I can't see you making a normal boring tamo, Advent. It'd be like seeing you with an outboard on your kayak...just wouldn't be right.

Hey Todd, is this what your calling Ironwood? I've got a couple of these trees in the yard I transplanted from the woods. If that's the wood you mean then I'll have to try it. To bad the bark has to be removed, alot of character there. Very pliable branches.





They do have a solar powered trolling motor set up for the kayaks now. But it defeats the purpose and the reason we got the kayaks in the first place.

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Tenkara Mushroom

Advent, that is a tough one. I'm no tree expert, especially saplings, but I think you may have some cedar elms there. Those bark ridges almost exactly match the photo in my Audubon tree guide. Don't quote me though 'cause I have seen similar in the woods here in Minnesota and the guide shows the furthest north that tree gets is northern Arkansas, so it's possible it's an immature hornbeam. The best way to tell is when it leafs out and especially when it fruits in the fall, although I don't know if yours will do that at this stage in its growth. If you have an agricultural extension or university nearby that would be definitive; also if you could find some mature examples and take some bark photos maybe we could nail it down better.